A Northern Chronicle

spring has sprung...

2008-04-13T17:31:00.002+01:00

early evening sun streams in through my window as i sit here and type. but, being the month of april, there is the very real chance of a "plump" of rain at any time. this doesn't detract from the fact that spring seems to be here, and brought with it the feelings of excitement and optimism about being outdoors and planning exciting activities for the summer ahead.

alas, it doesn't look likely that this summer will afford me the now traditional trip to iceland to volcano watch. instead i hope to be gainfully employed around edinburgh in order to make it through the very important 3rd year of my course. 3rd year is important as it is the final year of part 1 qualification - the first of 3 hurdles towards becoming a qualified architect. so, it means head down and hard work. money will be needed to get me through it.

something else which fills me with excitement is the fact there are less than 2 months of this academic year left before the long summer vacation. which is a great milestone. already my thoughts are turning towards next summer and the possibilities for my compulsory practice year which comes after that. being a bit of a nomad, i am already planning to get away from edinburgh for the year - either to work at home in shetland for half the year, to save money, then taking a wild and exciting trip away around the globe. or, alternatively, to buy an old 4x4 and head to iceland to work there for a year. much depends on getting the right kind of opportunity with an architectural practice. but at the moment, it is great to dream of the possibilities.

4 weeks of time off from college are almost at an end. i've had a great and fun-packed easter break which has included a trip to berlin, a stint at home in shetland, as well as some great socialising here in edinburgh. i feel enthusiastic about facing the new and final term of the year - an interesting project to design a school of boat-building. shouldn't be hard for a shetlander!

for those of you who don't know or have forgotten about my other blog - drop by www.archsutherland.blogspot.com to check out my work.

here's a little taster of some of the things i've been up to.

TEC2001 and TEC2002

2008-02-09T21:02:00.000Z

A few weeks ago I added a post about this term's project. I'm pleased to report that it is almost over. For the last 6 weeks I have been designing a glorified shoebox as a solution to an aircraft hangar brief. It isn't sexy at first sight, being as it is a mere box,... but i hope that the very slick finish in stainless steel will sex it up a bit. Deadline is Monday, which means this weekend has been a non-stop marathon of model-making (I hate Wonderland Models for their bad advice on soldering!!!!) and producing very technical and time-consuming drawings. But all over in 36 hours!

new horizons

2008-02-04T01:46:00.001Z

the last few weeks have been tumultuous, one way or another. upheaval,... change,... rather than anything too traumatic. the most significant development being starting a new job, working as a PA for professionals in a large property development company. i am working part-time hours alongside my studies,... and so far it works well. i just hope i can manage to make up the lost time in the studio in my free time.

so, with new found wealth (!!!???) and more freedom from employment at weekends i anticipate a return to the good old days of weekend jaunts to see friends and have wild times across europe. the first of these will be a long overdue trip down to cambridge - hopefully to coincide with the lents boatclub dinner! so, here i come.

deleterious effect...

2008-02-04T01:36:00.000Z

dear readers.... it is with great relief that i can post news of having deleted myself from the world of online social networking. yes, facebook, gaydar, myspace, you name it. so, apart from this meagre blog, i am virtually anonymous in cyberspace once again. so you're going to have to email or call me if you want to find up what i'm up to,... unless its posted on here of course. haha. but i have control over this, at least!

back at school,... again!

2008-01-08T02:37:00.000Z

i can't believe that my last post was at the start of the year. well, now we're a term down and about to start another term. this time we face the exciting challenge of designing a hangar for a vintage aircraft - largely a structural project because one of the main considerations is accommodating the large wingspan of the plane without columns to support the roof. i'm not too good at the technical side of things, so this term could be challenging. wish me luck.

Back at School!

2007-10-08T11:50:00.000+01:00

Well, another long summer is over. Why do we get such long summer holidays as students? Is it just so the academics can get a long break? Or time to actually get on with their own research? Either way, I've had a good summer, but a large part of it has been spend working just to be able to afford the rent on my flat. I'd much rather have continued with my architecture course and just taken a nice 3 week holiday somewhere. Fast track degrees, that's what we want when we're turning 30!

So, what did I do with my summer apart from working,... I hear you cry. Well, 2-3 weeksin August were spent in Iceland with Nick on volcanoes and with Thor gaying it up in Reykjavik. Then in mid September I went back to the rock that is home and went to a most fabulous wedding. And just before the start of term last week I enjoyed a little trip to Sweden, which included a couple of nights in Stockholm - one of my favourite cities. I accidently wandered right to the front of the Architecture School at the Royal Technical University there, which just happens to have an exchange link with Edinburgh College of Art! Hehe... is someone trying to tell me something?

Anyway,... off to plan for the big 30.

Which Famous Leader...???

2007-06-26T13:24:00.001+01:00

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Did I say summer?

2007-06-14T14:01:00.000+01:00

Yeah, .... those of you who haven't been to Scotland but have the received wisdom notion that the weather here is changeable,.... are quite right. Sometimes we Scots like to dispel the myth that the weather here is all over the place, but I think today I want to re-enforce that. On Tuesday I got sunburned in the park - it was a scorcher. Today, I have under-layers on and a nice warm coat,... buttoned right up to the neck.

But its the tourists that I probably feel most sorry for. They come on their european tours in the middle of summer fully expecting a little warmth,... even in Edinburgh. But today they were cowering in the wind and creeping around looking for shelter. Respect to the Japanese painting and drawing group whom I spotted bravely perched around the Royal Mile, artistically absorbing St Giles and the rest of the city scape. But it surely can't be easy to paint with gloves on?

School's Out For the Summer...

2007-06-12T18:53:00.000+01:00

I can't believe it - first year of architecture is over. We've had a pretty insane couple of weeks working up to the final deadline. But now we are free! I'm off to work my butt off and enjoy the summer - including two weeks in Iceland! Yae! Catcha soon, cool cats. xx

Well, well, well....

2007-05-31T18:29:00.000+01:00

I'm suddenly tremendously enthusiastic about blogging! I have even created a new blog where I will post stuff from my life as an architect - it hasn't got anything on it yet, but it's called archsutherland.blogspot.com

I'll give you a teaser though - with some of my scribblings and skecthes.... a CAD 3D image of a rooftop room and terrace, and some sketches of my library which I'm designing at the moment.

xx

almost nobody...

2007-05-20T14:17:00.000+01:00

... ever reads my dreary blog, but I thought it might be time to add a few lines, just so those few people who do tune in don't think I've dropped off the edge of the world.

Well, things in Edinburgh are going pretty well. Since my last digest of news I've spent a week in Paris on an architecture study visit - which was great fun and I'm now (at last) a great fan of Paris and various things French. My former housemates Agathe and Alexis should be delighted to hear this.

The Shetland Folk Festival was held at the start of this month, and through an old and dear friend (Mhari) I got involved as a raffle ticket seller and went home for one of the best weekends I've had in absolutely ages. I can't rate the SFF enough - the islands come alive with revelry. The music is great and the party just never stops. My hit acts were Americans Crooked Still, Canadians Mauvais Sort, Terra Folk from Slovenia and Orkney's excellent Lazy Boy Chair. Check them out if you can.

College is treating me well. We have only a few weeks of term left before embarking on a lengthy summer break - which, as usual will see me spending a couple of weeks in Iceland doing a bit of volcano climbing, hot spring bathing and gaying it up at Reykjavik Pride. But I'll also be busy working in Edinburgh - mainly at the very excellent Hewats Restaurant - where I've been a happy part-time waiter for the last month or so. The food is as good as it gets and we're an extremely friendly bunch of staff - so do drop in for a special bite.

Love and lots...

more model mayhem...

2007-02-10T19:29:00.000Z

Here are a couple of my favourite models from our current project to design an island retreat for a writer. And beneath, one of my currently favourite songs - Heartbeats by The Knife.

Piracy is Illegal

2007-02-10T19:21:00.000Z

"Valderee, valderah, my nap-sack on my back"

2007-02-10T19:01:00.000Z

Check out this intrepid traveller! Caught on camera buying luxurious foodstuffs in M&S. "This isn't an ordinary backpacker - this is a juicy and ripe Icelandic backpacker!"

another crazy night in edinburgh!!!

2007-01-29T17:47:00.000Z

MIKA - we love you!

2007-01-28T19:31:00.000Z

You surely can't have escaped noticing that a hot new talent tops our British charts. Yes, the afore described MIKA is the latest entertainment sensation to Grace (Kelly?) our ears - an boy, what a pleasure it is too. Check out his number one hit!

Congratulations!

2007-01-25T22:19:00.000Z

Brushing with nature...

2007-01-18T02:47:00.000Z

A third-year print-making student has created an odd installation in our sculpture court as part of a college exhibition. A live hamster powers a wheel which in turn powers a cam which causes the front leg of a stuffed hamster (raised on its back legs) to wave up and down. Very odd,... and slightly distressing. Not least for the live hamster, having to animate his dead cousin.

This was my first brush with nature today, and it wasn't going to end there. Only about 30 seconds later, while walking out of college down to Lady Lawson Street, I was confronted by the unusual sight of a fox trotting towards me on the other side of the driveway. "How odd", I thought. But quite pleasing. Certainly the closest I've ever experienced these beautiful and timid creatures. Well, maybe not so timid. It carried on past me, quite unperturbed by my presence.

Then,... later still,... on arrival at my flat, I encounter yet more livestock! This time in the form of a mouse,... scurrying first across the kitchen floor, then, horror of horrors, into my room,... then back into the hallway and into the utility room, where I promptly locked in, hoping that the snug fit between carpet and door would keep it quarantined until a trap can be procured! The hamster and fox I can cope with,... but the mouse is doing my head in! It is probably gorging itself on my washing powder as I write, before nesting in the box to have a litter of 16 micelets. I will never be able to wash laundry again. Save me from a clean clothes catastrophe!

Merry Christmas to me...

2007-01-06T23:05:00.000Z

I have a habit of buying Christmas presents for myself, and they usually involve travel. Christmas treat 2004 was flights to Iceland, which opened a whole new chapter in my life. Christmas 2005 saw the purchase of flights to Sweden, which was my first ever Christmas away from family. This Christmas (2006) I reaped a wad of cash from family, and I'll be using this in the most fabulous ways. Firstly, I'm buying a hydration back pack to encourage me to train for the Landmannalaugar to Þórsmork run (a cross-mountain ultra-marathon of some 55km in Iceland). My second indulgence will take place on Feb 24th when I head down to Newcastle for a day out and to hear the fantastic talent (in every department) that is MIKA! Check this guy out!

Happy Christmas!

2006-12-24T21:02:00.000Z

Greetings, friends! Christmas is practically upon us, though it barely feels it. The weather in Shetland is mild and still, a little more like October than late December. We've haven't had more than a sniff of winter,... thanks to a few sleet and hail showers.

But I think Christmas arrived today. I went to a small and remote church on the far north part of the islands for a christening (baptism, actually). The tiny church in the little village of Ollaberry is situated close to the sea. I took a pugh next to the window so that I could look out across the water and watch the low sun shine in through the windows to cast a warm glow over the full congregation. Candles took over when the odd cloud slid past. It was perfect. The organist was a bit quiet, the guy singing behind me kept getting the words wrong, but apart from that it was nice.

Now, I'm warming some mulled wine and cider to have a festive drink before heading out to the watchlight service for yet another dose of the christmas message. Oh, how wholesome.

So, dear friends around the world, I hope you are having, or have had a pleasant christmas. May you have a wonderful 2007.

model mayhem

2006-11-18T01:15:00.000Z

This week has been dominated by one thing - work. Apart from an excursion on Monday to have a few drinks with Czech mates (see what I did there?) Honza and Mira, I have had my head down all week - focused on the prize. The prize in question was the successful development of some models for a place to write and perform haiku in. A nice and fairly open brief. Friday is crit day, and today was our final opportunity to get some formative feedback on our design models, so we were going at it "bags out" as we say in Shetland, to have our models finished to the best of our ability. We were also being given a provisional grade, which was kinda scary. So, in order to meet this challenge, I have been putting in the hours at the studio - until 11pm on both Wednesday and Thursday nights. And I think it paid off. I don't know what my provisional grade is, but I feel reasonably satifsied with my scheme and my progress. So fingers crossed.

Whats really nice, is I can hardly beleive that this is my occupation these days. Gone are the woes of life in the world of education research. Instead, long hours in college are a relative pleasure! Hurrah for architecture!

Grassmarket

2006-11-11T12:15:00.000Z

I walk home from college through the Grassmarket in Edinburgh - a square in the heart of the old part of the town which is dominated by the towering castle above to the north-west. The Grassmarket is lined with places to eat and drink (especially drink), a few hotels (mainly Apex) and, I think its fair to say that its a place for having a night out, either for dinner, drinks, or a night or two away in a different city.

Amongst the tourists I encounter checking out the bars and the places to catch some nosh, I have recently spotted a youngish guy who seems to be homeless, sat on the pavement near to one of the classy hotels. The first time I saw him I prepared myself for the typical "spare any change?" line,... which didn't come. He didn't even notice me walk past. Somewhat surprised, I looked down and saw that he was far too engaged in writing in a book. Even more surprised, and probably slightly relieved, I carried on. I came across him again later in the week, in the same place, and as I approached I wondered if he would still be writing, and what words could occupy him more than the thought of change in my pocket. As I grew closer I found that he was busily completing sentances in a language learning activity book. I almost fell off the pavement. Now, firstly, I was amazed and yet pleased to see someone in such dire circumstances attempting to learn something. I couldn't tell if it was English or a foreign language, but that might not matter. The point is this person was learning, doing something about his situation. Secondly, and much less importantly, I was pissed off with myself, for having made so little progress in learning another language, despite all the linguaphone materials on my bookshelf at home in my comfy, warm flat on the Royal Mile. It was a real kick up the arse for me. I was really impressed with this guy, and I suppose he's taking the same steps that people who sell the big issue have made - doing something. But his quiet and dignified modesty makes me more inclined to support him. Although I have thousands of pounds of debt, I think I'll give him a few pence next time I see him.

wild weekend in edinburgh

2006-10-30T23:43:00.000Z

wow,... edinburgh nightlife hit me with a bang this weekend. everything looked tame when I got to Baraka and found little Miss C making knitting a scarf and joined in to help her finish it. But, that grandmotherly start to the weekend was certainly no sign of things to come.

We took advantage of cheap drinks offers, mated with our general enthusiasm for the time of the week, and became very jolly and silly indeed. From Baraka we went to Opium (following a little detour via City Cafe, where we couldn't get in cos one of our party was too drunk!). Opium is a rock bar, so we had to get down and dirty with all the other revellers. In sharp contrast to her sedate knitter mode, Ms C became an animal - biting people left right and centre, including a poor 18 year old architect from my course, who didn't know what hit him. News of this spread around college like wild fire and now I seem to be known for having the whackiest friends.

After meeting a small band of Shetlanders in Opium we moved on, probably to find food, but we stumbled instead upon an irish pub that none of us had ever seen before. So, we ventured in, thinking it might be some sort of strange portal to another world occupied by leprachauns. What did we find? Yet more Shetlanders,.... in abundance! Live music was still blaring loudly, so we danced that off in style (with Magners in hand) until it was time to leave there too.

By this time fast food establishments were drawing down their shutters and we were hungry. We wandered kinda aimlessly (losing more and more of our party) until we came upon a dapper young man in an elegant suit (which was what caught our eyes). Moments later we were sipping a nice red wine in his flat, which just happened to be nearby. Oh what a pleasant, if slightly unusual ending to what was a rather bizarre night.

(PS,... there is masses of stuff that I can't possibly write about here. So, you'll just have to use your imagination and read between some of the lines, somewhere)

Saturday was mostly spent in bed until it was time to meet the motly crew for drinks again,... this time in the convivial surroundings of Cafe Royal. Dearest A from Cambridge was up, which was a delight. And we enjoyed a humourous evening of talking utter bollocks. It would have been a nice pilot for my new TV Show, "Bringing Out the Bollocks in You"... a nonsense-speak chat-show, hosted by yours truly.

Sunday was the healthy part of the weekend (apart from the wine with lunch and the pint with dinner). A nice day trip out to N Berwick to stroll around by the sea and take in the country air.

Mmmm,... its nice to be back in Scotland!!!

Feerie settin' in...

2006-10-23T18:55:00.000+01:00

I think I'm coming down with something - a feerie, as we call it in Shetland. A flu, or a "bug" of some sort, I suppose you might say. I feel cold though it is warm, my eyes smart and sting a bit, my back and neck is sore, and i feel generally listless and disjasket. Too much revelry at the weekend? Perhaps, but you don't usually pick up a flu when you go out for a pint or three. I suppose it depends who you end up snogging at the end of the night!

John Schneider...!!!

2006-10-22T14:35:00.000+01:00

Is his man a god, or what?

Soft Parcels and Birthday Thanks

2006-10-21T11:26:00.000+01:00

Many of you have been writing to me and asking about how my birthday went. So I'm posting a short response to you all.

Firstly, my birthday this year fell in the middle of week two of the term - a week busy with lots of unfamiliar work and highly important getting to know each other type activities. I decided to play my birthday fairly low-key amongst all this (partly didn't want to draw attention to my age amongst all the youngsters on my course). So I celebrated my birthday on Tuesday night (after midnight) with course-mates down the pub, after an Architecture night out. And on my real birthday I joined Nick and friends for a pub quiz down at the Blue Blazer. No real parties, no real attention drawn. But pleasant, nonetheless. Also, Carlos (a friend from Cambridge) and I had celebrated heartily the weekend before, so I was partied out.

A few notes of thanks are appropriate though. To mam for the very generous cash gift which I will spend wisely on sensible clothes purchases (plural intentional). To my flat mate for the very nice bottle of wine (which we are in the middle of drinking). To friends who bought me drinks on my birthday, especially Ro and Nick. To Þórhallur for all the cards from Iceland, including the prestigious message from the "icegays". And finally, to my sister and family for the "soft parcel" they sent. My sister has a tendency to send me soft parcels which can often cause me concern. "Soft parcel" is code for "I've got you something to wear, and I hope you'll like it". Anyone who knows mean will understand how much of a risk this is. Nine times out of ten it has to be swapped for something else. I'm afraid this was one of the nine, dear sister. But it's the thought that counts!

Win over GNER!

2006-10-21T11:05:00.000+01:00

Travelling home from Iceland to Shetland this summer involved a long and slightly convoluted journey. Þórhallur and I took Árni's car to the bus station in Reykjavík, where I caught a bus to airport at Keflavik, and from there I took a very comfortable flight down to Glasgow with Iceland Air. I went through to Edinburgh by first taking a bus to central Glasgow and then a train to Waverley Station. I needed to swing past a friend's place to drop off luggage, so I took a taxi to his house.

After a pleasing al fresco lunch with Nick I began my journey north to Aberdeen to catch the 7pm ferry to Shetland. I took a taxi to Waverley to get a train. Up until now, everything had gone perfectly according to plan - no delays. But GNER let me down royally. The train was late in arriving at Edinburgh and continued to experience further delays all the way up the NE coast, such that we arrived in Aberdeen some 90 minutes late - and only 10 minutes after the ferry to Shetland had departed. (We pleaded with Northlink to wait for us, but they wouldn't budge!)

GNER put us (myself and lady going home for a funeral) up at a hotel in Dyce so that we could fly home the following morning. They met the hotel expense, but wouldn't book us on flights - we were told to do that ourselves and present a claim to GNER. We did this (thanks to a free wireless connection in my hotel room, I was able to book us flights online for 6am the following morning). The flights were a reasonable £145 return. I filled out the complaint form, wrote a long letter, included my receipts and waited patiently.

GNER have just reimbursed me this very week, some two months later. Hence the celebration! To mark the occasion, I'm going to swing down past Princes Street and do a little autumn wardrobe shopping this afternoon! I should also point out that GNER were kind enough to give me a compensatory £8 voucher for use on their services in the future. How nice!

Gripe of the Week: Round Taps!

2006-10-18T16:13:00.000+01:00

Ok, as a grumpy old man, I'm going to start reflecting on things that annoy me. I expect I will have a design focus, being as that is what I'm concerned with at the moment.

This week I'm picking on the rounded tap! Britain doesn't really do plumbing fittings very well, in my experience. The Scandi's are great at it, as are the germans and italians, of course - famed for it! But we get it wrong, left right and centre. Not only are round taps quite ugly, but they are also really impractical. Try gripping and turning on a sticky round tap with wet or slippery hands. Nightmare!. Its a bit like round door knobs - I think they are problematic! So, bug thumbs down to the round tap! As an Architect, I won't be specifying them!

Fuss About Nothing

2006-10-17T13:18:00.000+01:00

I don't want to start some kind of a rush on tickets to Iceland, but has anyone out there realised how cheap it is to fly with BA when you book well in advance? I have just checked flights to Iceland for next summer (for Reykjavik Pride) and return fares with BA, inclusive of taxes are currently a mere £78 return!!! This is about half what the Iclandic companies are charging. Lets get booking!

Settling In

2006-10-15T13:33:00.000+01:00

Well, three weeks have passed since I arrived in Edinburgh, after a hectic week in Malmo which ended with a very drunken night out in Copenhagen with Arni Gretar which resulted in the loss of my phone! Don't worry - Mr Vodafone kindly supplied me with a new sim card (for free) which I stuck in an old phone that I had lying around. Some of you may remember the old ericsson with the "active flip technology". Pórhallur, you were very familiar with it - well now it gets yet another lease of life.

Week one here was taken up with Fresher's Week and lots of rather tedious introductions to Edinburgh College of Art life, facilities, etc. I couldn't wait to get started. And in weeks two and three (one and two of the course) we have launched right in. We get lectures in design, materials, sustainability, and visual culture. In addition we get a whole day of drawing classes each week, and about 2 days of studio time where we play with materials and build models. Its going great! I actually feel like I can become an Architect. I'm dead interested in the work, and I'm discovering expressive, creative and drawing capabilities that were previously untapped. This is a relief.

Excitingly, I've made contact with an architects practice nearby, which is quite well known in Scotland, indeed, across the UK. I'm very hopeful that this might lead to some part-time work, either during term or perhaps in vacations. I will keep you posted on this.

I feel like some nice Scottish porridge now.

Palace fit for a King!

2006-09-11T21:00:00.000+01:00

Friday turned out to be a great day - I got the flat on the Royal Mile. Anyone arriving in Edinburgh is only a few minutes walk from the train station to my flat, and only a further few minutes from some of Edinburgh greatest attractions, cafes, shops, bars and restaurants. Oh come all yea faithful!

Edinburgh times...

2006-09-07T12:53:00.000+01:00

I've been in Edinburgh for a couple of days now, having flown down from Shetland on my GNER compensation flight (cos their late train on the way home in August caused me to miss the ferry and to take the plane instead). The focus of my trip down has been on finding a place to stay for the coming academic year. And let me tell you all, it has been difficult. I say has, because I'm hopeful that my search is over. What I've found is that almost all rooms to let are within about 50 quid either way of £300 a month, but that there is a massive difference between places that are palaces and flats that are more like slums. Luck of the draw is what its all about.

If all goes well tomorrow then I'll be moving into a flat on the Royal Mile. For those of you who know Edinburgh, that is a very central location - right on the approach to the castle. The flat is on the north side of the street and has views over Princes St gardens and beyond. With any luck I will also be able to see the sea, something I missed sorely in Cambridge.

On a very different note, I was in Blackwells yesterday, a big bookshop, looking at the architecture section, when an oldish man came along and started perusing books next to me. While flicking through the pages of a book on the history of London's architecture he started to mutter and mumble to himself. Distracting though it was, it did raise a question in my mind - do deaf people speak to themselves in sign language? Or is it only those of us who are blessed with hearing who do it?

Reykjavik Online

2006-08-11T15:31:00.000+01:00

Hello listeners! Service has been resumed following a long period of e-drought during my rural isolation in iceland. I'm back in the land of the city-slick and am relishing everything that urban icelandic life has to offer, including exceptionally convenient free wireless internet access all across this fine town. I love it, and I feel very connected again.

Iceland life has been trating me well. Apart from a couple of things. I have a large gash in my leg following a lava incident on the 1980 flow on Mt Hekla. It is healing nicely now and I think I will have a handsome scar to proudly show off to demonstrate my manly explorer-like lifestyle. I have also had a few too many hangovers following generous drinking sessions with new freinds in Hella. I can't remember most of your names, ladies, but I will never forget your faces! So, fieldwork in the name of Geoscience really has proved to be the rather extreme experience I had always imagined it would be.

Highlights from the last few weeks include trips to see the iceberg-filled lagoon Jokulsarlon, visiting the puffins and cliffs of volcanic Heimaey (Westman Islands), taking a trip to the hot-springs of the interior of Iceland at a place called Hveravellir, and getting my hair cut this morning. Photos of these will probably follow (not the haircut, maybe).

So, I have a few day left in Reykjavik before returning back to the UK. I'm having so much fun and enjoying catching up with all the friends I have made here, and I do not relish the thought of a return to terror-struck Britain. I hope the travel crisis wil have abated a little, and I hope that the clear plastic bags for minimal carry-on luggage mean more generous check-in allowances. I have soooo much crap to ferry home to lovely Shetland.

So, this Friday sees the start of Reykjavik Gay Pride - an extremely popular weekend of events to show support for and celebrate gay, lesbian and transgender people, and their struggles, achievements, lives. I'm heading off to the opening ceremony in a few hours, which, if it is anything like last year, will be a lot of fun. Norway's Vigdis and Ruth wowed us all with such a hilarious blend of drag, song, and humour, and now they are back to host the entire evening. It promises to be a great weekend, even if the weather man doesn't agree!

Fond farewells?

2006-07-12T03:35:00.000+01:00

My final days in Cambridge are ebbing away - less than 5 to go. Some of you will no doubt be of the opinion that I'm making mountains out of mole hills, what with all the fuss I'm making. I suppose I've never felt so settled before, and never have I worked in the same place or with the same people for so long before. Moving is a big deal. So, I've started to say goodbye to colleagues who may or may not be around over my last few days in Cambridge. I've started to see more of my dear friends T, L and A so that we get the best of each other before I leave on Sunday. I had my final boogie down at Life with some of my other dear friends tonight - a place which holds many memories indeed. Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye. I wonder how many of those promises to "keep in touch" will be borne out? Some more than others, I hope. Who knows!?

No more trips to london

2006-07-10T23:28:00.000+01:00

Today I took my last trip to London - to visit my sponsors for a project meeting and a farewell lunch. Its the end of yet another era - one which I have enjoyed tremendously. They have been excellent funders, and I shall miss there support and the very personal relationship we have enjoyed over the last 4 years of collaboration.

What I won't miss about my work life in Cambridge is the trips up and down to London on the train in a suit, and stuffy and threatening underground trains. Public transport in the south east is so unpleasant and unnerving! Today I encountered numerous transport police on my short journey between Bank and Kings Cross. Should I feel reassured or scared? "During this time of heightened security..." the repetitive announcement warned - a stark indicator that London lives under the threat of attack. I love London - its a vibrant, exciting and diverse city - definately one of the world's best, but frankly, I'm glad I'm out of it for now.

Before I go

2006-07-09T17:41:00.000+01:00

As I close the door on my old life here in Cambridge, and turn the handle to the door of my new life in Edinburgh, it seems like a good time to start this blog. A place to where the life and times of little old me can be shared with friends old, new, near, far, and the like. A place where I can wax on about the new stuff I do and the new adventures I hope to have.

Cambridge, you have been good to me, and I will miss you and all those of you who have been important to me during 5 unforgetable (if hazy) years of fun. You know who you all are. Farewell.